Module 7 Learning Activities
15 points
In nature there's no blemish but the mind.
None can be called deformed but the unkind.
Shakespeare
Twelfth Night
Respond to the questions below and submit your responses to the Instructor. Each correct response is worth 1 point. Add relevant links to your Health 1 Bookmarks/Favorites folder.
Infections
Read: Vaccines
Read: The Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention's Web page on Antibiotic Resistance
1. A college student with a cold accidentally sneezes on her term paper as she prepares to hand it to her instructor. A couple of days later the instructor has a cold because the term paper was a vector for transmission of cold viruses. Read this information on stopping the spread of germs and describe how the student and the instructor could have lessened the risk of transmission of this cold.
2. Read Vaccines. What is a vaccine and how does it work? Just for fun, explain why there is no vaccine against the common cold (See this NY Times article).
3. Define antibiotic resistance and explain the reason it is a major public health concern (see The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Web page on Antibiotic Resistance)
4. AIDS is an acronym for Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome. Read this information about HIV/AIDS. Respond to these questions:
- What does it mean that HIV/AIDs is acquired? List three ways it can be acquired.
- Describe how HIV/AIDS involves immune deficiency.
- Explain what it means that AIDS is a syndrome.
5A. Why is it important to cook meat thoroughly?
5B. In the United States each year, approximately 25% of the population experiences a food borne illness, generally from an infection by one of several common pathogens. Look at these guidelines for food safety and list five that you could incorporate into your life in order to reduce the risk of food borne illness.
5C. Cruise around the FoodSafety.gov Web site. Write a brief description of one thing you found interesting.
Cancer
Read This material about cancer
6. What type of cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in the United States? What single behavioral change could reduce the number of cancer deaths (read this if you're not sure)?
7. Melanoma is the most common type of skin cancer and the one with the greatest risk of death. The risk of melanoma is associated with lifetime exposure to the ultraviolet rays of sunlight, called UVA and UVB. To lessen the risk of melanoma, people should slip, slop, slap, and wrap.
7A. What do slip, slop, slap, and wrap refer to?
7B. What is the UV index for your community today? What measures for sun protection are recommended?
8. Go to American Cancer Society. Choose one topic of interest to you and write a brief report on what you learned.
Clean Water and Health
Water is fundamental to life and health. The World Health Organization reports that about 1.2 billion people on Earth do not have sufficient safe, unpolluted water. An estimated 200 million people worldwide are infected with the waterborne disease schistosomiasis (What's that?)
9. Find the water quality report (also called a Consumer Confidence Report, CCR)for your water supplier. Is your supplier out of compliance for any regulated substance ? (If your water supplier does not have an online report, get a hard copy).
10. Bottled drinking water is very popular. Go to The Pacific Institute to learn about an aspect of bottled water of interest to you. Write a summary of what you learned.
11. Living-quality water is scarce in both the world and the United States. We in California know too well about water shortages as we are being asked not to use water frivolously. This web page lists nine suggestions for conserving water. Identify one suggestion that could you implement in your life to help conserve water.
Air Quality and Health
Read this material about air quality and health.
12A. What is ground level ozone? How is sunlight a factor in the production of smog?
12B. What is PM? Where does PM come from and why is it of concern?
12C. What is today's air quality in your community?
13. How "green" is your car? Go to the U.S. Department of Energy's air pollution website . Click on the link at the upper left called "Find and Compare Cars" and report the annual carbon dioxide emissions in tons per year and the air pollution score (if given) of your current car.
14. How much do you contribute to global warming? According to UC Berkeley's Carbon Footprint Calculator, what is your carbon footprint (click on CoolClimate Calulator)? What step could you take to lessen your carbon footprint?
Your Thoughts, Please
15. What is your interpretation of the quote from Shakespeare's Twelfth Night at the top of this web page? Besides including your thoughts in your assignment, you may post them on the course Discussion Board if you wish to.
